Only Human
by Yakubi
Summary: Edward, Alphonse and Catherine are frantically searching for the Philosopher's Stone only to have someone show up and wreck their plans. Will they be able to get the legendary amplifier despite the circumstances? Dead.
1. Chapter 1

Hey! Long time no see everyone! Well, I started this a very long time ago and I am almost done, so I figured I should just start posting it now. So, this is a Fullmetal Alchemist story. Long story short a buddy of mine from school has not only a FMA obsession but also an OC for the series. Since she learned that I can write she kept asking me to write s story for her. Needless to say, I caved. So, there are two original characters in this story. Catherine Cairo is my friend's and Sarah Kaine is my own. I'll put some links up on my profile so you can check out my friends DA, she has pictures. Anywho, I hope you like this story, I tried to make it as interesting as possible. One more things though, this is in the anime-verse of FMA and because of the presence of OCs some of the events or facts have been changed, please don't kill me.

I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist and I make no profit by writing this. Everything belongs to their respective owners.

Warning: This story contains strong language and violence, as well as situations that may not be suitable for minors. If you are squeamish I recommend you be cautious in reading this.

This chapter was beta'd by the amazing Taijiya Mizu! (Seriously, she's awesome for putting up with all of my mistakes.)

©Yakubi

**Only Human**

**Chapter One**

Edward Elric grumbled as he walked down the hall, his hands shoved in his pockets with a sour expression painted on his face. The metallic clinking of his brother's armor ricocheted of the walls and echoed down the halls. Catherine fumed behind the Elric brothers. "That bastard!" Catherine said to no one in particular.

"Tell me about it!" Ed threw his hands up into the air. "We're finally getting close to the stone and what does he do? He calls us back! We might not be able to track down this Marcoh guy again!"

"You two..." Al groaned. "It's not nearly as bad as you make it seem."

"Yes it is!" Catherine and Ed shot back.

"He's waiting for you all so you'd best hurry." Havoc nodded as the three alchemists passed his desk on the way to Mustang's office.

"Thanks Havoc." Ed said as he walked past.

"Welcome, Chief." Havoc grinned, the cigarette in his mouth nearly falling.

Catherine snatched the cigarette from Havoc's mouth and threw it in his garbage can. "Stop smoking already!" Havoc smiled at the blond girl as she walked past. He nodded at Al as the youngest of the group bowed politely before moving towards Mustang's office.

Ed waited for his brother and friend to catch up to him. He put his automail hand on the door knob. "You guys ready?" Nods followed. Ed sighed before turning the brass knob and pushing his way into Mustang's office. "Alright, Colonel Bastard, what the hell do you want?" Ed walked into the room, only to stop in his tracks.

Standing there was a girl. The girl was completely covered in a long black cloak, the only visible thing being her head and feet. Ed's eyes were locked with hers. Edward didn't know what it was, but something about her seemed... wrong. Her face showed no emotions and her eyes were the color of an angry sea. It was a blue so deep he thought he would drown in it. Ed barely felt Catherine bump into him, but it was enough to break the strangle hold the girl's eyes had on him. "Ed, you alright?"

Ed walked forward a bit more so everyone could enter the room. He did his best not to make eye contact with the strange girl. "Brother?" Alphonse asked stepping into the office behind Catherine. "Brother...?"

Edward looked to his two team mates. "It's nothing." The blond teen felt a chill go down his spine. He knew the strange girl was looking at him.

"So..." Al turned to bow politely to the dark girl. "Are you here to see Colonel Mustang as well?" Alphonse sounded cheerful.

The girl looked at Al. "No." That was all she said, but her voice seemed to penetrate to the three's very souls. Something about this girl was wrong.

"Oh... th-then what are you doing here?" Alphonse shuddered.

"Colonel Mustang told me to wait here." Her voice was like velvet. Velvet soaked in blood.

Catherine decided to try her hand at talking to the strange girl. "Well..." the blond laughed nervously. "Are you a member of the military?" Seeing as they were in a military building, it seemed like a safe enough question.

"Yes, I joined today."

"Really?" The lighter blue of Catherine's eyes met the far darker of the other girl's. "Are you a soldier?"

"No-"

"Ah!" The door opened behind the three alchemists. Colonel Mustang walked through the group and over to the girl. He stood beside her and did not seemed bothered to do so. "Alright you three, I'd like you to meet Miss Sarah Kaine. She's the newest state alchemist to join our ranks." Mustang then gestured to Ed, then Al, then Cat. "Please meet Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist, and his brother Alphonse who is also an alchemist, though he's not registered with the state. The blond girl there is Catherine Cairo, the Quick-Edge Alchemist. These three are very good at what they do." Mustang seemed almost proud. Then again, the three were the best known alchemists in all of East and Central. Not to mention the two in the military had both been recruited by him. "Seeing as you're new, I figured I'd put you with two of our best." Roy smiled at her as though he saw nothing wrong, even though her very presence affected everyone else in.

"You're putting her with us?" Ed asked, shocked.

"Yes I am Fullmetal. Do you have a problem with that?"

"Well yeah I do, Cat is my partner, and I've already got Al."

Roy turned to Sarah. He put his hand on her head and gave her a pat, messing her already messy brown hair. "Why don't you go wait outside with Havoc? I need to talk to Ed here."

A small flush came to the dark girl's cheeks. Her hand twitched, the urge to slap the colonel's hand away nearly taking her. "Yes, sir." The girl turned around and bowed to them all before leaving.

Ed watched her go and noticed her hair for the first time. It was a dark, rich chestnut color. Though the top of her hair messily framed her face the rest of it was in a neatly groomed braid that fell all the way to the back of the girl's knees. The door closed behind her with a click. "What was that about Colonel? You seemed very out of character."

Roy sighed before dropping himself into his chair. "You have no idea." Roy massaged the bridge of his nose with his gloved fingers. "I've been trying to be friendly with her so she'll open up a little, but no luck so far." Roy leaned forward and rested his face on his intertwined fingers. He looked very serious. "Fullmetal, Quick-Edge, let me get straight to the point. I'm not assigning her to you because I like it. Personally, I don't think you need someone like her with you, but it was an order from the Fuhrer himself. He wanted her to be assigned to another state alchemist as soon as possible."

"The Fuhrer!?" Catherine gasped. "What does he have to do with all of this?"

"I don't know..." Roy growled. "But I will find out. That girl suddenly appeared in my office with a letter from the King. She was given the title of State Alchemist, and I was at the state tests. She wasn't. Something stinks here, I just hope the rot isn't coming from the top of this food chain because if it is, we'll start rotting too." Roy glanced at the three before him. "I need you three to keep an eye on her. To tell you the truth, the only thing we know about her is her name and second name. That and her physical features of course. Not even Hughes could find anything about her; she doesn't even have a birth certificate. And yet with all of that, the Fuhrer made her a State Alchemist. I didn't even get to see her test, so I have no idea what kind of power she has."

"What's her second name Colonel? Maybe that can give us a hint to what she can do," Alphonse said.

"Her second name is strange." Roy paused. "She's called the Blood Alchemist, and it's impossible to transmute blood because it's part of humans- that would be human transmutation." Roy looked over the three before him. "I'm trusting you three to keep an eye on her and make sure she doesn't do anything suspicious." Nods followed his statement. "I want you to send me letters regularly about what you observe." Roy reached into his desk and pulled out a paper before handing it to Edward.

"What's this?" The older Elric asked.

"It's a code. I can't have you sending me letters that plainly say I'm having you spy on one of the Fuhrer's own, can I?" Roy smiled, but then his expression turned grim. "I can't let something like this get overlooked, Fullmetal, Quick-Edge. I'm trusting you with this. Please don't let something this big slip through your fingers."

"Don't worry Mustang." Catherine threw a blinding smile in the direction of the grim colonel. "We'll keep an eye on her. You know how Ed and I are. We'll get the job done,and if we don't, Al here will make sure to give us a good kick in the ass to get us going again." She smiled again.

Mustang gave the team a rare smile, but only for a moment. "Alright then, where are you off to now?"

Edward scoffed. "The same place we were going to go to before you called us here." Obviously he couldn't say out loud where he was going, lest the room was bugged.

"I see. Good luck, you'll need it." Mustang stood and gave them a salute, which the two state alchemists mirrored, Alphonse bowed. "You are dismissed." Mustang sat down at his desk. Today was going to be a long day, and it was going to be filled with worry for his subordinates and lots and lots of paper work. He could already hear his first lieutenant's gun clicking. Roy sighed before starting on the stack of paper work closest to him.

Outside, some kind of weird staring contest was taking place between Catherine and Edward and Sarah. The girl just looked up blankly at them from her seat in front of Havoc's desk. "So ah..." Havoc started. "How's everything, Chief?"

"Everything's fine Havoc. This girl here is our new partner." Ed continued to look at Sarah.

"Is that so? Well, Miss Kaine here seems like a cute enough girl." A slight flush appeared on the girl's cheeks, so she looked away quickly, but other than that there was no change to her cold exterior. "I hope you kids have fun. Don't get into too many adventures if you know what I mean." Havoc laughed before pulling out a cigarette and placing the poison on his lips. He started digging in his pockets for his lighter.

Just as Catherine opened her mouth to yell at Havoc she noticed Sarah lean over Havoc's desk and pull the cigarette out from between his lips. "These things are bad for you. You should quit." Sarah's voice just dared Havoc to question her as she threw the cigarette into the garbage can before settling back into her seat. She looked up at Edward. "Mr. Elric, what are your plans?" The girl asked evenly.

"Oh um..." No one had ever called him 'Mister Elric' before, and he didn't think he liked it. It made him sound old. He scratched the back of his head. "Please don't call me that." Ed laughed nervously. "For now I think we should get going back to the hotel we were staying at. I think you should join us. We need to learn more about each other if we are going to be working together." Ed looked at Cat and Al and saw that they agreed with him. They needed to get information on this girl. He looked back at the dark girl; she seemed to be thinking it over.

Sarah looked back at them. "Very well, I will join you in your hotel." The girl stood up to leave. Cat, Ed, and Al all exchanged looks before heading towards that door. "Mr. Havoc..."

Havoc, who had stood up to bid the alchemists farewell, turned to look at the girl who was standing sheepishly by his desk ."What is it?" Havoc looked at the girl.

The dark girl bowed deeply to the man. "Thank you." And then she ran out of the room to follow her new companions.

Havoc sat back down and scratched the back of his head. "Weird girl, but still cute." Havoc chuckled. "Still, very weird." Havoc reached into his pocket to pull out a cigarette. He stuck it in his mouth and pulled out his lighter. He lit the cigarette and took a deep breath. He let the smoke fill his lungs before blowing the poisoned air out of his mouth. He could feel the nicotine entering his system. And then the door was thrown open and a very pissed off Catherine Cairo entered his office.

"I told you to quit that shit!" The blond girl bellowed before taking Havoc's cigarette and smothering it before throwing it into his trash can. The alchemist huffed before heading back out of the room to join her companions outside the military building.

Havoc looked very put out as he looked into his garbage can. Three wasted cigarettes greeted him, but he didn't dare pull out another one for at least an hour. Havoc sighed as he leaned back in his uncomfortable office chair. That girl must have a damn radar. Every time he tried to smoke, and she was within five miles, she seemed to teleport to his office and yell at him about his bad habit. Havoc's hand itched to pull out a cigarette. There seemed to be no chance of smoking until the four alchemists left town; as it seemed the newest member of the team had a problem with his habit as well. Maybe he should quit; it's not as if smoking was making him look any younger.

Colonel Mustang walked out of his office and greeted the scowling lieutenant. Mustang chuckled. "Cairo take your cigarettes again?"

"Not just her." Havoc grumbled. "The new girl too."

Mustang laughed. "You know you should quit. It's not good for you." Havoc just fumed.

* * *

Yay! So that's the first chapter, hopefully you are at least partially interested now. Feel free to leave comments or questions, corrections would also be appreciated (I am the Queen of Typo). Also, I am having a hard time naming this story and I'm not sure I like the name I came up with, if you have any ideas please let me know. Anywho, I will see you next chapter, please leave a comment!

~Yakubi


	2. Chapter 2

Hello again and welcome to chapter two, yay! *fireworks go off in the background* So, in this chapter you will learn a bit more about the two original characters in this story. Hopefully it won't be too boring. I find one of the appeals to writing fanfiction is that I don't have to waste time telling you what characters look like, because you already know. So please forgive me if my descriptions are bad. Anywho, I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it, if not more.

Beta'd by Taijiya Mizu. Seriously, the awesome overflows. XD

©Yakubi

**Only Human: Chapter Two**

Ed, Al and Cat waited at the entrance of the East Military Headquarters building. Edward heaved a great sigh as the three saw their new partner start to make her way down the concrete steps of the building. The girl's dark cloak swirled around her ankles as she practically jumped down the stairs, her boots making 'thunking' noises with each step she took. She looked towards the three and nearly made eye contact with Edward again, but he turned away just in time.

"So, should we get out of here?" Catherine nervously scratched the back of her head, a small smile on her face.

"Let's get going." Ed said as he turned around and started walking towards the hotel that the four of them would be staying at. Catherine hurried to him and walked beside him.

Alphonse decided to walk beside the dark girl. Maybe she was just nervous at meeting new people. Al hoped if he made the effort she would open up to him. After all, as his brother had so kindly put it, he was 'kindness in a can.' "So..." Al searched for something to talk about as the four started walking, Cat and Ed at point with Sarah and Al behind them. "What made you want to join the army?"

Sarah looked up at the Al. "I just wanted..." She looked down for a moment. "I wanted to help."

If Al could have, he would have smiled. She was just shy. "Really?" The girl nodded. "I think that's a great reason to become a soldier. After all, the military is supposed to help and protect people."

"Yes... I guess they are."

That was a strange answer if Al ever heard one. She 'guessed' they were supposed to protect people? It was in the job description for a soldier. Al searched from something else to talk about, something they had in common... "So, I suppose we're a party of alchemists aren't we?" Al chuckled.

"Yes." Sarah looked up at Alphonse. "Why are you not a state alchemist as well?"

"Oh that? My brother said that only one of us should have to be a 'dog of the military'. It was his way of protecting me I suppose. I did want to become one because I thought I could help my brother, but he insisted. After all, if a war were to break out the state alchemists become human weapons and are often ordered to kill people."

Sarah looked forward again. "I see. Your brother must be a very kind person then."

"Why do you say that?"

A small smile graced the brunette's lips. "Because he put you before himself. It is true that if both of you were working together as state alchemists you would be able to get more done, but he protected you by keeping you out of the military."

"I guess so... not many people would say my brother is kind. Most would probably say he's annoying, loud and obscene."

Sarah laughed a little at this. She was letting so much emotion show that she felt kind of weird, but nothing bad seemed to be happening so why not? "I don't know him well enough to be sure, but since all of us will be traveling together I guess there will be plenty of opportunities." Sarah sighed. "So what kind of alchemy do you use, Alphonse?"

Al chuckled. "You can call me Al; Alphonse is kind of a mouthful. And my alchemy is nothing special, just the generic every day kind." Al gestured to the two walking in front of them. "It's those two you want to watch. They are both very talented."

"I see. They are quite famous. Even when I sitting in the waiting room back at headquarters I could hear talk about them. What's so great about their alchemy?" Sarah hoped she wasn't asking too much.

"Well, they can both transmute without the use of circles. It's quite a rare skill. There are only three known people that can do it."

Sarah looked up with a look of panic on her face. She swallowed hard. Al didn't notice the change in her demeanor. "W-without circles? They can transmute without the use of circles?" The girl struggled not to make her voice shake.

"Yeah. But they both had to pay for it, equivalent exchange." Al looked down at Sarah; the girl was once again leaking a suffocating aura. The girl looked straight forward, but Al saw that her whole body was shaking.

"I see." Sarah did not want to talk anymore. She had thought that maybe these people would be different. But anyone who could transmute without the use of circles... Sarah shook her head to clear the thought. Now was no time for reminiscing, she needed to learn as much as she could about her new companions in order to use them to the fullest.

"Alright." Al and Sarah looked up and faced Ed and Cat. The two blonds were standing next to a door that led to the inside of the hotel the alchemists would be spending the night at. "This is it, hope you have everything you need cause we'll be leaving bright and freakin' early in the morning. We have a train to catch." Edward sighed. How he _hated_ getting up early. He was never and would never be a morning person. Opening the door, he led the way through the inn. He nodded at a very well endowed bar maid before making his way up the stairs towards the room that the alchemists would be staying in. Edward opened the door and went to the far end of the room. It was a second story room with a window that showed the setting sun. The fiery ball of hydrogen lit the sky in a hopeless attempt to keep the earth choking with its light. But the sun always lost to the darkness that chased it away. The sickly purple of the sky made shivers run down Ed's spine. The blond boy leaned against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest. He waited for everyone to get into the room. He nodded to Al, the younger of the Elric brothers shut and promptly locked the door. Catherine and Alphonse moved to stand on either side of Edward. Ed sighed. As much as he hated having to explain things, it made no sense to have Sarah travel with them if she didn't know what they were after. "Sarah." Edward's voice cut through the silence that had filled the room.

The girl looked up, her dark blue orbs making contact with the deep amber of Edward's eyes. "Yes?" The girl's voice did not falter.

Ed used all he had not to freeze. Something about her eyes... they made him feel almost as though he was being hunted. It felt as though she was so much more than what she was. Edward could not shake the feeling that there was much more to this girl than face value. "Do you know what we are searching for?"

The girl looked blankly at Ed. "I do not. I was simply assigned to be a sort of assistant to you and Quick-Edge. I was given no other information on the subject of your mission. My mission is simply to be as much help to you as possible."

Catherine sighed. Leave it to Mustang to send them a rookie with no idea what she was supposed to be doing. Cat looked over at Ed. Seeing him nod, she breathed deeply before looked at Sarah. "We're after the Philosopher's Stone."

Sarah's eyes flashed as she looked from Edward to Catherine. "You can't be serious." Sarah had heard rumors of it's existence. Secretly she was thrilled. It was just her luck to be paired with people looking for the same thing she was. "It's just a myth."

"Whether or not it's a myth is yet to be determined." Catherine said carefully. "But it is our goal to possess the Philosopher's Stone. We will not stop searching. And since you are to be our assistant, as you put it, I take it you will be helping us look for the stone." It was not a question. It was simply the way things would happen. Catherine shrugged mentally. If the girl had a problem with it then she could leave.

"We won't force you to help us." Alphonse jumped in. "You can always go talk to Colonel Mustang and asked to be assigned to someone else." Al didn't like the way the other two were talking to the smaller girl. It seemed like they were bullying her to him.

Sarah closed her eyes and sighed before opening them again. She looked over he new team mates. "My orders are to be of use to you. If you seek the stone then it is my job to help you. There is no other outcome. As I am a soldier I am to follow my orders. Whether or not I am comfortable with the situation is unimportant."

All three alchemists were shocked at the girl's words. She didn't care? She chose to just follow her orders regardless of her own personal feelings? Ed was the first to find his tongue. "Alright." Ed glanced out the window. "I think it's time we all went to bed. We have an early morning."

Ed awoke with a yawn. Sitting up in bed and raising his arms over his head, he groaned. Rubbing the sleep from his amber orbs, he waited for his eyes to adjust to the room's brightness. Looking around, he saw a lump of blankets on the bed next to him; Catherine was still asleep. She liked to wake up at noon or later so that didn't surprise him. Alphonse was propped up against the wall; the usual shine coming from the eyeholes in the helmet of the armor was not present, meaning that Alphonse was also, in some way, asleep. Edward looked around the room. There was something missing, something that should have been there. Then it hit the blond boy. Where was Sarah? As if in answer to his question, the door clicked as it was opened. Ed looked over to see the dark haired girl as she walked into the room. She appeared to be having some difficulty in carrying something in her arms. Edward realized that she was carrying three trays, each laden with food. Edward smiled. The girl couldn't be too bad if she was bringing them all breakfast. The girl made it to the table safely and set her burden down on the rich wooden structure. She sighed before turning around.

Sarah noticed that the elder of the Elrics was awake and looking at her. "Good morning." she said, the usually friendly greeting sounding strange as it was said in a very monotone voice. "I've brought breakfast for everyone."

"Thanks Sarah. You didn't have to do that." Edward smiled as he got out of bed. The cold wooden planks of the floor sent a shudder up his spine. Ed scratched his stomach as a giant yawn ripped from him. "Do you wanna wake Cat up or should I?" Edward looked at the girl. She seemed to be staring at him.

"I didn't know..." The girl mumbled.

"What was that?"

"No one told me you were equipped with automail."

Edward grimaced. Mustang had left a lot out when he had briefed the girl. Edward brought his flesh hand up to touch the metal of his right arm. He hated the falseness of the metal arm. The cold of it bit into the sensitive flesh of his warm fingers. There was nothing Edward could think of to say in response.

Catherine stirred. Suddenly she sat bolt upright in bed, her blue eyes going over the room. "Good morning." Her voice was very... grim sounding. "What time is it?"

"It is 7:12 A.M." Sarah responded.

"Really?" Cat yawned. "That sucks..." Cat got up out of bed and made her way over to the table. "Is this for us?"

"Yeah." Edward nodded as he moved to the table to join the blond girl. Catherine sat down beside him as he sat down in front of one of the trays. "Sarah got it for us."

"I see. Well that's great," the blond said as she picked up a piece of toast and started to nibble on it.

"Should I wake up Alphonse?" Sarah gestured to the suit of armor; the boy was still leaning up against the wall.

Edward and Cat exchanged looks. "Naw," Cat said, shaking her hand. "He gets up on his own; in fact he's usually the first one up."

Sarah suddenly looked down cast. "But his food will get cold..."

Ed was about to say something, but he noticed the shine to Al's eyes had returned. His brother had awoken. Alphonse lifted his head. "Good morning." Al said cheerily. "Wow, even Cat's up before me." Alphonse got up off the floor, the metal of the armor clinking loudly. "I must be losing my touch, and you guys got breakfast too. How long have you guys been up?"

"Cat and I just barely got up, and Sarah brought in breakfast for us all." Ed smiled at his brother.

"You should eat before it gets cold," Sarah said to Al. A stifling silence suddenly choked the occupants of the room.

Ed nearly panicked. What was he supposed to do? How was he supposed to tell Kaine that his brother was just a soul bound to a suit of armor? "Sarah-"

Sarah shot a quick glance around the room before sitting down hard in front of the tray she had brought for Alphonse. She grabbed a piece of toast, looked it over, and then shoved it in her mouth.

Edward, Catherine and Alphonse all exchanged glances, before laughing at the strange situation. A slight blush appeared on Sarah's face as she chewed her big mouthful of toast. Swallowing heavily she reached for the glass of juice on her plate and downed the whole thing in one gulp. This caused another uproar of laughter to swell though the group. Sarah sat the glass down on the table, her teeth literally grinding. "What?" She stood up, the chair falling behind her, causing the blush on her face to grow even bigger. More laughter followed. "What!" There was still no intelligible reply among the laughter. Sarah's body was practically shaking as she walked over to one of the empty beds and sat down Indian-style with her arms crossing over her chest. She turned her head to the side and sighed heavily.

Alphonse finally got control of himself. He walked over to where Sarah was sitting, Cat and Ed still giggling in the background. "It's nothing you did," he said lightheartedly.

Sarah scowled. "As far as I know being laughed at usually means you did something wrong."

"Not all the time though," Al chuckled. "Sometimes people laugh simply because they don't know what to do."

Sarah looked at Alphonse, her gaze pointed. "What do you mean?"

"Well," Al scratched the back of his head. "None of us really knew what to do in that situation. So when you just took matters into your own hands and solved the problem, it was a little surprising. I'm not saying that it didn't turn out well though." Al laughed again. "Though with the toast in your mouth you looked kind of like a squirrel." Al couldn't suppress the chuckle that rose from his metal chest.

Sarah looked away again, although Alphonse noticed that her shoulders didn't look quite so tense.

"Alright you guys, time to get ready, we gotta be at the train station in forty-five minutes." Edward said as he downed the rest of his juice. He set the empty glass in front of him and slid the tray to the center of the table before getting up. With a yawn and a stretch, he walked over to his suitcase, pulled out some clothes and went into the bathroom to change out of his sleeping pants into the day's clothes.

Catherine moved over to her own suitcase and got out her clothes for the day. She pulled out her belt, a pair of close fitting jeans and her dark blue long sleeve shirt. She loved that shirt. It hung off her shoulders in just the right manner to make you notice she was a girl but not enough to make her look bad. Catherine looked over at Sarah, noticing the girl was already ready to travel. The dark girl was sitting cross-legged so her legs disappeared underneath her black cloak. Catherine could see that the girl had twisted her hair, in the braid, loosely around her neck. Then again, Cairo mused, with hair that long it probably was a pain to deal with sometimes.

"Bathroom's open," Edward said as he walked from the bathroom. He wore his usual clothes, the leather pants and black shirt, over shirt and then the long red jacket he was so fond of. The only thing missing were his boots, which were underneath the table. Moving to said table, he sat down in one of the chairs. Pulling his boots over to himself, he started to put them on as Catherine moved into the bathroom.

"See you in a minute," Catherine said with a wave as she closed the door.

"I'll take the trays downstairs," Sarah said as she got up from the bed. Quickly, she grabbed the trays before leaving the room. She didn't seem to be having as much trouble with the trays, probably because they didn't have so much stuff on them this time around. Edward absentmindedly noticed that her cloak had two holes in the back as well as the front; someone probably thought symmetry was stylish.

"Brother?" Al asked timidly after Sarah had left the room.

"What is it?" Edward replied as he leaned over to tie his boots up.

"About Sarah..."

Ed looked up. "What?"

"I don't think she's a bad person."

"Neither do I. I just think there's something weird about her." The elder Elric went back to tying his boots.

Catherine emerged from the bathroom. She looked in between the brothers. "So when do we leave?"

Edward stood up from the table, a few inches taller thanks to his boots. "Just let me grab my suitcase." Ed and Cat walked over to the corner of the room where their suitcases were. Wrapping their hands around the leather handles of their respective cases the two blonds smiled at each other. "Alri-"

A scream split through the room. From what they could tell, it was coming from downstairs.

"That sounded like-" Catherine froze.

"Sarah!" Alphonse ran to the door and threw it open, Edward and Cat close on his heals. The metal boy jumped down the stairs, landing with a 'thunk'. He looked around the room, his eyes searching for the dark girl.

"Wha' was tha' missy?" a giant, yet lowly, looking man sneered, his black hair greased back. Alphonse turned his eyes to the man as he raised his arm. "I didn't hear ya." The man laughed. Al finally noticed whom the man was talking to. The man was pinning a girl to the wall, his hand clamped around her throat and his other brandishing a knife at the struggling girl.

"Sarah!" Alphonse gasped. Catherine and Edward had noticed the man's hostage as well.

"Al..." Sarah gasped out, her face getting red from lack of oxygen. Her feet banged against the wall, looking for something to stand on seeing as the man had her far enough off the ground that her feet could no longer touch the floor. "Ed... Ca-at..." Sarah's hands tightened around the wrist of her attacker.

The man turned his head to the side, but just enough to glare one blood shot eye at the group. "Is this girl yours?" He didn't wait for a reply. "You migh' wanna teach her some manners." The man laughed. "She was rather rude ta' me, and I think she oughta apologize, don'cha?" He laughed again, sounding hysterical.

"You bastard!" Edward yelled before clapping his hands together, transmuting his automail into a blade sharper then the one being used to threaten their partner. Catherine had already transmuted a section of the wall into a knife. The two charged the man.

Sarah gasped as the knife poked at her throat, her hands falling away from the man's arm. "You wouldn't want me to hurt the girl now would ya?" Catherine and Edward skidded to a halt as the man pushed the knife closer to Sarah's throat. "Tha's wha' I though'. Now why don't you two jus' back up a bit, huh?" The man smiled before looking back at the girl. "Now missy, why don' ya apologize ta' me now, alrighty?"

Sarah's eyes hardened. She fought the darkness at the edges of her vision away. Now would be no time to pass out. Struggling to force her oxygen starved muscled to move, she lifted her right hand up to the man's arm again. Letting herself smirk, she grabbed the knife in the man's hand by the blade. Pushing her palm against the sharp metal, she felt it cut into her skin. Along with the prick of pain at slicing her palm open, she also felt a wet heat spread out from her wound and down her wrist. Warm blood seeped from the fresh wound.

"Eh? What'cha doin' now missy? Got some fetish?" the man asked, his eyes narrowing.

Sarah let her hand fall back down. Hitting the backs of her hands together, she willed a transmutation. Sarah felt her blood being drawn through her wound and heard her companions gasp as she worked her unique alchemy. Using the last of her strength, she pushed her hands outward and willed for the newly made weapons to move. All the man could do was grunt as he was pushed back to the nearest wall and then pinned there by Sarah's blood creations. Sarah fell to the ground, her knees making hard contact with the wood flooring of the hotel.

"What the hell are you?" the man screamed, unsure of what was happening. Ten steel hard, blood red knives were sliced through his clothing and deeply embedded in the wall behind him. They effectively held the man in place despite his struggles.

Sarah stood and looked at the man. She hadn't wanted to hurt him seeing as he wouldn't be able to put up a fight, but there was a limit to her generosity. She smacked the backs of her hands together before putting her palms together again. "My name is not 'missy'," Sarah said as the light of a transmutation flared between her hands. She walked towards the man who was now her victim. Pulling her hands apart, she deftly caught the handle of her new weapon and moved closer to the man. "It's Sarah Kaine." the girl's eyes were narrowed as she pointed to tip of her sword at the man's neck. "Next time you decide to do something stupid make sure you know who you are dealing with." Ice coated her words.

The man fainted, a string of drool hanging from his open mouth.

Sarah sighed. "What a coward..." Sarah leaned over and transmuted the blood knives into harmless gases. The man's unconscious body fell to the floor. Sarah sighed again before transmuting her sword. Reaching inside of her cloak, she pulled out a small container. Opening it up, she took a small glob of the salve and rubbed it across her wounded palm. The bleeding stopped instantly as the jar was placed back into one of the cloaks many pockets.

"Sa-" Edward started.

Suddenly the door opened violently. Blurs of blue uniforms entered the building, rifles in the arms of the soldiers. There were six in all, guns were pointed. "Which one of you is Ben Willis?" One of the soldiers yelled. The alchemists raised their hands to show they were unarmed.

"What are you doing?" a voice intruded and another person in uniform walked through the hotel's threshold. The woman's blond hair was clipped up. "You don't point your guns at everyone you see!"

The soldiers pulled their guns to their sides and gave a strong solute. "Sorry, First Lieutenant Hawkeye!"

"Lieutenant!" Ed said happily.

Riza Hawkeye turned round and looked from Sarah, to Alphonse, to Catherine and then finally to Edward. "Edward? What are you doing here?"

Edward smiled. "Just on our way out."

"I see." The woman walked over to Sarah, glancing at the man unconscious on the floor. "Meet Ben Willis, rapist and serial killer. We were called here to arrest him, but by the looks of it, you got here first, Fullmetal."

The bar maid from the previous night dashed out from behind the counter where she had been hiding. "That's him!" She yelled. "He-! He tried to-!" The woman started sobbing as she ran towards Sarah. Sarah seemed frozen as the bar maid grabbed her in a fierce and tight hug, Sarah's face being pushed into the woman's chest. "Thank you so much! I thought he was gonna-!" The woman sobbed even harder.

Riza grabbed the woman by the shoulders and handed her over to one of the solders. "Take her out to the car; we'll need to get her testimony. And the rest of you, get this guy up. I want him locked up tight." The soldiers ran to complete their orders. Riza then turned to the alchemists. "You're all free to go, just send me a letter with the details."

Three of the alchemists nodded, Sarah being too stunned to talk. Al, Cat and Ed ran up the stairs, grabbed their suitcases, including Sarah's, which was carried by Al, and then went back downstairs. The alchemists walked towards the door, Sarah following after getting her suitcase from Alphonse.

Ed brushed past Hawkeye. "I'll make sure to send a copy of my report to Mustang." The blond woman's eyes flashed in understanding before she nodded curtly. The alchemists took off at a fast pace towards the train station, Edward in the lead. Catherine was close behind him as was Al; Sarah seemed to lag a bit behind. Sarah's head was lowered. What had she done?

Running into the train station, they heard the train start to move. With the help of quick feet and a lot of swearing, the group made it onto the train just in time.

So, what do you think? Any good? I actually worked really hard on this. I wanted my character to be strong, but not overpowering. Hope it came out that way.

Anywho, please leave me a comment, constructive criticism is appreciated. Please let me know if you see any mistakes, I tried to catch them all, but I rarely do.

Thank you very much!

~Yakubi


	3. Chapter 3

Welcome to chapter three. There will be some explaining in this chapter, I hope it all makes sense. ^.^

©Yakubi

**Only Human: Chapter Three**

Breathing harshly, the group moved though the train, finally selecting a pair of secluded seats in the back. The group shoved their luggage, with much help from Al, into the overhead shelves before sitting down. Ed and Cat on one bench and Al and Sarah on the other, Sarah and Edward having the window seats.

An uncomfortable silence choked the alchemists. Though they tried not to stare, three pair of eyes kept moving back to Sarah as she watched the country scenery go by.

"Sarah." Edward said, steel in his voice. He needed to know how she had transmuted her blood, a taboo act of human alchemy, and lived, much less avoided the gate.

Sarah continued to stare out the window, seemingly enthralled by the passing fields.

"Sarah?" Alphonse tried this time, his voice sounding hesitant.

Sarah sighed before turning her face away from the window. She let her head fall forward, her eyes locked on the red carpet of the train. "You want to know about my alchemy." It was not a question.

Catherine leaned forward, interlacing her fingers and placing her elbows on her knees. "You transmuted your blood. That's human alchemy; it's not possible for you to just commit a taboo and have nothing happen, not to mention you did it with out the use of circles." Catherine's hands tightened, her knuckles turning white as she fought off the memory of her parents' deaths. Now was not the time to be lost in the past. "How did you…?"

Sarah sighed again, something she seemed to be doing a lot of recently. "There is a disorder called hemochromatosis. Most people eat about ten milligrams of iron a day, but out of that, the body only takes about one percent. People with hemochromatosis could eat the exact same things as people who don't, but these people's bodies can take up to twenty percent of the iron ingested, regardless of how much iron is needed."

"What does that have to do with you committing a taboo?" Edward scoffed, his tone rude.

"Just let her finish, I'm sure she's got a reason to tell us this." Alphonse said calmly before turning back to Sarah.

"Usually, this excess iron is found in the blood or crusted around certain organs. The organs that have iron build up can fail, and hemochromatosis can also cause bone defects and even death." Sarah raised her eyes, a small chuckle escaping her lips, but her eyes looked sad. "Death… just by a little iron." Sarah faced the group. "There is no cure for this disorder, but there are treatments, such as limiting your diet or having blood drawn regularly. And although this is usually an adult onset disorder, some cases have shown symptoms in the early teens." Sarah shook her head. "I came up with my own treatment."

Catherine balked. "You have this hemochromatosis thing?"

"Yes. Because of this disorder, the iron builds up in my blood, if I don't get rid of the excess iron I could become very ill, or die."

Edward gasped. "You're not transmuting your blood…"

Sarah's eyes flashed. "No, I'm not. What I transmute is the excess iron; I use it before it can cause problems. Alchemy is my treatment." Sarah sighed. "And I do use circles. I have circles tattooed on the backs of my hands; I hit those two together causing a transmutation. I use that to transmute my blood into forming whatever circle I need onto the skin of my palms. Then I clap my hands together to transmute a second time.

The group let silence flow over them. Ed, Cat, and Alphonse let themselves think on the subject while Sarah went back to looking out the window.

"Sarah…" Alphonse started.

Sarah said nothing.

Edward looked over to the dark girl. "We're sorry alright? …we shouldn't have assumed."

Sarah stared into the glass, her eyes on her reflection. "It's fine; it was only a natural conclusion." Sarah turned to the group, her eyes sharp. "And don't pity me, I have a disease, it doesn't mean I'm going to drop to my knees and die.

Catherine laughed. "Don't worry; we don't pity you, we're just glad to finally know something about you."

Edward sighed as he leaned against the window. For some reason, he could feel it in his bones that this trip would not be as clean cut as he hoped. There was still much to learn about Sarah Kaine, and it was Ed and Cat's job to find out all they could.

The rest of the trip was spent in silence. The train's steady bumps over the tracks lulled the four companions to sleep, each with a different question in their minds.

A whistle blew sharp and clear in the country air, its shrill call waking the alchemists from their peaceful slumber. Working the kinks out of their necks, they got off the train, luggage in hand. Stepping onto the train platform, they made their way out into the small village. The village was home to farmers, their houses spread out wide so that their individual livestock had enough room to graze and wander. Here, in this tiny hamlet, Edward, Cat and Alphonse hoped to find a clue to the whereabouts of the Philosopher's Stone. Edward took the lead, the other three following him wordlessly.

"Where are we going?" Sarah asked, as she was not familiar with why they were in such a backwater town.

"We are going to see a man called Dr. Marcoh. He seems to have some information about the stone." Alphonse leaned down to whisper to the shorter girl.

Sarah nodded as Ed spoke. "We have a little bit of a walk. His house is on the outskirts of town from the information we gathered last time we were here."

"Why did you leave if it's so important that you talk to him?" Sarah asked, genuinely curious.

Edward smiled. "We had to come pick you up."

Sarah blushed and looked down. "…sorry."

Edward stopped and turned around, the other two standing next to him and he looked at Sarah. "Stop apologizing, it's not like you could help it. Let's just get to Marcoh, get the information and then go back to East."

Sarah nodded, as the group started moving again. The walk was long, the sun sinking ever lower and they marched down the old-fashioned dirt road. The dust in the air made coughing a regular sound among the group, but steady progress was made. The group finally reached the small clinic at the end of town; it was rumored to be run by Dr. Marcoh. The sun was now just barely peaking over the horizon.

Edward sighed. "You ready? I don't know what the guy will do, so make sure you're ready for anything."

"Alright." Catherine said. "Let's just go, I just want to get back to the town and get something to eat." The girl's stomach rumbled to accent her statement. A blush formed on the blond girl's cheeks at the sound. "Sorry…" She rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.

Sarah moved towards the front of the house. Waiting had never been something she was good at. Edward, Catherine and Alphonse jogged up to her, Ed taking the lead again, his brother behind him. Catherine stayed behind the brunette girl. Edward made his way up the steps, he felt reassured by the steady metal footfalls of his brother behind him. Stopping on the porch, which was only big enough for the two Elric brothers to stand on, he looked to his companions, Catherine and Sarah on the stairs. Edward turned back to the door and raised his hand, just as his knuckle touched the cold wood of the door it was yanked open from the inside.

Edward quickly looked the man over. He wore a worn brown suit jacket over a white shirt and plain pants. Grey framed the sides of the man's head. The man's eyes were open and panicked, they flashed down to Edward's front right pocket, the man's eyes widened further as he spotted the silver chain of the state alchemist's pocket watch. "You…!" The man pulled out a gun and aimed it at Edward. "I won't let you take me back!"

"Brother!" Alphonse pushed his brother behind him just at the man pulled the trigger, the bullet bounced harmlessly off of Al's metal body.

A dark shadow flew past the Elric brother's and shot at the man. The man was now pinned to the ground by Sarah. Catherine was right behind her and quickly relived the panicking man of his weapon. Sarah's gaze was hard as she looked the man in the eyes. She felt like something was gnawing at her from the inside. She let a little bit of it show as she spoke, the man being the only one that could see the change in her. "Who are you?" Her voice dripped venom.

"Ma-Marcoh…" The man stuttered.

Sarah reined herself back in and then turned to glance at the Elric brothers as they entered the clinic. "He says he's Dr. Marcoh."  
"Then let him up." Edward looked stern.

Sarah got off of the man and even offered him a hand to help him up. The man got up on his own and moved towards the only table in the room. He sat down heavily in one of the chairs, he cradled his head in his hands as sobs shook his frame. "There's no hope is there? You're going to take me back…. I'll have to make those awful stones again…"

"Marcoh!" Edward nearly yelled as he stomped over to the man. "If you're done with you pity party why don't you listen to what we have to say?"

"I know what you're here to do!" The graying man yelled. "You're going to take be back!"

Edward was about three seconds away from decking the man. Old or not he was wearing away Ed's limited patience. "No we're not!" The man raised his eyes to stare at the blond youth. "We only came here talk."

Edward took a seat at on of the empty chairs; Catherine took the seat next to him to put emphasis on the point. Sarah and Alphonse remained standing behind the two blond alchemists. Marcoh looked up at the four, his eyes lingered a moment longer on Sarah before moving back to Edward. "If you're not here to take me back then what do you want?"

Edward had never been one to beat around the bush. "We want your research notes."  
"What?"

"We want your research notes." Sarah said emotionlessly.

"…on the stone?" Marcoh whispered.

"Yes." Catherine said. "Please, we really need your notes."

Marcoh put his head back into his hands. "I will… I will never let anyone see those notes."

"What? Why?" Alphonse was shocked.

Marcoh looked up, his eyes glinting. "It's the devil's work! I refuse to let anyone else soil their hands with it!"

Edward got up, his bangs hiding his eyes. "I see." The blond walked up to the left wall.

"What are you doing?" Marcoh's voice shook.

"Your research," Edward raised his metal fist. "It's here isn't it?" The blond punched a hole in the wall, the wooden boards splintering and giving way to the force behind his metal arm.

Marcoh gasped. "What are you doing?"

Edward pulled back his hand. Small bottles filled with a crimson liquid filled the inside of the wall. "This is your research right?" Ed grabbed one of the bottles and held it up to the light; the bottle cast a blood red shadow on his face. "Where are your notes?" Ed glanced at the shaking man, his amber eyes flashing.

"I won't tell you, its evil work."

"I'll decide that, where are your notes?"

Sarah sighed. "Dr. Marcoh, just-"

"Dr. Maroh!" A tan man burst through the door, interrupting the gathering of alchemists. The man paused at the sight of the four strangers in the house. "I'm sorry to interrupt but please, you must come to the square!"

Marcoh rose from his chair, worry etched in every line of his elderly face. "What happened?"

"It's Emily! That weak old barn finally collapsed, but at the wrong time! Emily and her friend's were playing in it and it came down, everyone else got out but little Em's stuck in there!"

Before the man had even finished his sentence the five alchemists where running down the street, the tan man behind them. Though running to the center of town took some time, the place was easy to find by the large crowd around it.

Marcoh ran though the crowd. "Please! Get out of the way!" Though some of the people turned around to recognize the town doctor, 'Dr. Maroh', most didn't even blink an eye as the alchemists tried to get through.

Catherine turned to Al with a sigh. "Alphonse! Maybe you could get some of these people outta our way?" Cat nearly had to shout to be heard over the roar of the crowd.

Alphonse nodded understanding and turned forward. After pulled the four other alchemists behind him Alphonse turned back to the crowd. "Everyone, get out of the way!" Though Alphonse was usually a very polite and somewhat quiet boy, no one other than his three companions knew that. That crowd parted quickly in the face of what seemed to be a giant of a man in a suit of armor. "Thank you very much." Al said in his normal tone. The five alchemists hurried forward.

There, in the left side of the square, sat the toppled remains of what used to be a large barn. What seemed to be the girl's family sat closest to the rubble heap, crying could be heard from the group of people. Edward ran forward, using his metal leg to propel himself forward faster. "Sarah, Catherine! Help me clear the debris out of the way! Alphonse, get in there the moment you see and opening, get the girl out!"

Sarah and Catherine dashed forward, the two girls running to the sides of the barn and using both muscle and alchemy to move the splintered pieces of wood aside. Al and Ed ran to the front of the barn, Edward doing his best to make an entrance into the rubble using alchemy. "We don't know where she is!" Edward yelled to Al. "Sarah and Cat will work their way to the center and I'll start from here, you go inside and see what you can find!" Alphonse dove in without a word, his metal body disappearing quickly in the ruin of the barn.

Marcoh stood back, astounded. Here where these people he had just met, working so hard to save the life of someone they didn't even know. Soon, even the dazed Marcoh could hear the cries of the child lost inside the ruble.

Transmutations flared brightly from the barn, Catherine suddenly gasped. "I found her!" Catherine pulled the crying child from the remains of the barn. Catherine ran over to Marcoh, the child in her arms wailing loudly, her tiny fists wound tightly into the blue material of Catherine's shirt. Soon, Sarah, Edward and Alphonse were at her side as they made their way to Marcoh, the family of the girl struggling to make their way to the doctor. "Marcoh!" The blond girl held the child out to the startled man. "You're a doctor! Do something!"

Marcoh looked the girl over quickly, she seemed to have a small wound on her head, but there was a large bleeding gash on the girls left arm. Marcoh fished through his pocket until he felt cool glass on his fingers. Quickly pulling out the bottle in his pocket, he pulled the stopper from it and let the red liquid flow into his hand. With the touch of oxygen, he felt the substance become semi-solid. Putting the gelatinous substance up to the girl's wound, he willed a transmutation. With a flash of light from the stone, the girl's bleeding stopped and the wound seemed to knit itself back together.

The girl's family finally pushed its way through the crowd. "Emily!" the girl's mother's voice sounded shrill in the ears of the listeners. "Emily! Give me back my Emily!" The woman cried.

* * *

Marcoh turned to Catherine. "Take her to the clinic, I'll be there shortly with the girl's family." Catherine and the other's took off at a brisk jog. The sooner they got to the girl to a place she could rest the better. Something tore at Catherine's heart as she ran away, the calls of the girl's mother ringing in her ears.

Explaining Sarah was hard. One of the reasons I write fanfiction is so I can avoid having to tell people about the characters because they already know.

Oh well.

Oh, and hemochromatosis is a real disease. ^.^

Hopefully you liked this chapter. Please leave a review.

Yakubi


	4. Chapter 4

Yay, chapter four. I wrote this story for a buddy, which is why I haven't stopped. I know there are OCs in here, but I swear they aren't mary sue's. Really. No romance here, I mean it. Come on, just give it a try?

©Yakubi

**Only Human: Chapter Four**

Catherine softly put the girl down onto one of the many beds in the small clinic. She was so small. Catherine wiped off a smudge of dirt from the girl's face. The girl stirred. The young girl, Emily, had cried herself to sleep in Catherine's arms on the way to the clinic. Catherine leaned down and whispered to the girl. "It's alright, go back to sleep." The girl seemed to understand, as she rolled over on to her side, her golden red hair spread out around her.

The girl brought her knees up as Catherine covered her with a blanket. "…mommy…. Please don't go…"

Catherine froze, her entire body seemed paralyzed. Don't go…? Images of a mangled corpse entered her mind and attempted to pull her into the past. Catherine shook herself of these thoughts, there was no time to reminisce, Marcoh would be arriving soon with the girl's parents. Sarah stepped beside her as Edward and Alphonse took seats at the small table near the front of the clinic.

Sarah stayed as silent as a ghost next to her. Catherine looked down at the girl, for the first time realizing how small she was. The brunette's head barely made it to her nose, and seeing how she was only a little bit taller than Edward that meant something. Catherine returned her gaze to the sleeping girl child. "Do you have any siblings Sarah?"

"Many." Sarah answered cryptically.

"Really? I'm an only child, but I swear sometimes Ed and Al behave just like younger brothers." Sarah said nothing, seeming content just to stare at the little girl on the bed. "So, do you have brothers and sisters?"

"I have one brother… but from where I am from everyone is considered family, blood related or not."

"Okay, well, I'm going to go see how Ed and Al are doing…" Catherine felt a little awkward as she walked back towards the front of the clinic, but not before turning to look at Sarah. The dark girl stayed silent by Emily's bed. It was almost as though something had entranced her. Cat made her way to Edward and Alphonse. "Is Marcoh here yet?" Catherine asked with a sigh.

"No." Edward said. "But he should be here any moment."

As if in answer to Edward's comment, muffled sounds came from the other side of the clinic's door. Alphonse got up quickly and opened the door for Marcoh. The graying man was followed in by the hysterical woman from the town square, obviously the girl's mother. Behind her was a large man, and if you tilted your head, you could see a small girl standing behind him. The small child's hand was clutching tightly at the hem of her father's shirt.

"Where is my Emily?" Though the woman was not as loud, there was still a touch of panic in her voice.

"Don't worry yourselves." Marcoh said in a voice that told everyone that he was used to consoling hysterical mothers.

Catherine stepped forward. "Marcoh, I put her on one of the bed's back here." Catherine gestured to the back of the small clinic and then led the doctor and his followers to Emily's bed.

Everyone was soon gathered around the bed of the girl. Everyone watched as Marcoh gave her a check up, bandaging her wound and making sure nothing was broken, the doctor looked over to the girl's family. Marcoh smiled lightly. "She'll be just fine. A few minor scrapes but nothing that won't heal with a few days of rest."

"...can I touch my sister?" The small girl that had been holding on so tight to the father's shirt spoke so very quietly.

Marcoh turned to her. "Of course you can."

The father picked up the small girl and then placed her beside her sister on the bed. The two seemed to instinctively curl up with each other.

The seven people walked back to the main area of the clinic, leaving the two small siblings curled up together on the bed. The mother was crying, but it was no longer the crocodile tears the group had seen before. Marcoh, the parents, and Edward sat down at the table. The husband had an arm wrapped protectively around his wife. The wife calmed down enough to speak. "Emily is my daughter… thank you, thank you so much for saving her. My name is Mary."

The husband rubbed his wife's shoulder reassuringly. "My name is Mark. Our little Em' there is very precious to us you see. Our youngest, Kate, was born blind so she's really attached to Emily. If something had happened to Emily…" The father sighed. "We're just glad she's safe."

Catherine smiled. "It was no problem, besides, who wouldn't help a kid in need?"

Everyone smiled (except Sarah of course), Catherine's mood lightening the atmosphere.

"Are you all members of the military?" Mark asked.

Catherine and Edward exchanged a look. On their travels, they had learned to be very cautious when asked this question. However, seeing as there seemed to be no point in hiding it at this time they exchanged a nod. Edward looked to the two parents. "Yes, we are state alchemists, excluding my brother." Edward motioned to his large metal brother. "Why do you ask?"

The family smiled. "Thank God you're here! We've been waiting!"

Edward raised his hands. "What are you guys talking about?"

Mark spoke up. "We called the military weeks ago and they said they'd send out help!"

"Help with what?" Sarah's pointed glare told the man to get to the point.

"Well…you see… this town is usually so quiet. Everyone knows each other and pretty much everyone trusts each other…. But recently…."

Catherine tried her hand. "What's been happening here to make you think that you need military help?"

Mark and Mary lowered their heads. Marcoh spoke instead. "I was against calling the military, but it was not something I could deal with on my own. There has been a string of murders in this area, usually young children. No one has any clues…" Marcoh bowed his head.

Alphonse gasped. "That's terrible!"

"We couldn't catch the murderer, and everyone's tense. We don't usually let our kids out without us right there with them. Still, we keep finding the bodies of children. I've had to look at the bodies to find out the cause of death." Marcoh shuddered. "Every single one of them died of blood loss."

"Blood loss?" Sarah mumbled, before turning to the doctor. "How was the blood removed? Were there any other injuries on the victims?"

Marcoh leaned back in his chair, not liking how close the dark girl was to him. "There was two circular puncture marks on the neck, sometimes identical marks were found piercing the femoral artery. Some of the children looked like they fought, others had no other wounds." Marcoh's voice shook.

Edward placed a hand on Sarah shoulder. She turned her head to face him. "Do you know something about this Sarah?"

Sarah's expression was slightly different than usual, but Edward didn't know the girl well enough to figure it out. "No, I don't know anything about this."

"Are you sure?" The blond boy could tell she was hiding something, feel it.

Sarah shrugged off Ed's hand. "It's nothing." Edward's eyes burned into her. "Look," Sarah looked up sharply. "If it had anything to do with your search you'd know. As it is, it does not. Leave it be." Sarah stayed silent after that.

Alphonse spoke up. "Let's just leave that alone for now." Al turned to Mark and Mary. "I'm sorry, but we aren't the ones you're waiting for." The parent's faces suddenly looked down cast. "But if we can help we will. We'll be sure to keep our eyes open during our stay." Alphonse sounded like he was smiling. The man and woman just held onto each other. Alphonse turned to his brother. "Brother, I think it's time we went back to the hotel, don't you?"

"Yeah…" Edward sighed, and then turning to Marcoh, he spoke. "Marcoh, if you don't mind, we'll be back tomorrow." Edward turned around to face the rest of the group. "Let's get going then you guys." Edward turned sharply towards the door, Alphonse and Sarah following him out.

Catherine turned to look towards the two curled up girls on the hospital white bed. Catherine smiled and then turned back around and ran to catch up with her companions. Those girls would be fine.

Everyone sat in the hotel room doing various things before they went to bed. Edward was oiling his automail joints, Winry was likely to murder him if he didn't start taking better care of his prosthetics. His eyes wandered to Sarah. The dark girl was sitting on her bed, a large book in hand. Her eyes moved back and forth surprisingly quick as she read the text, Edward had yet to see her blink. He couldn't help the gnawing feeling in the back of his mind that whatever she knew about the murders was going to become very important. Edward looked back to his arm. She had been right back at Marcoh's clinic though. If it had nothing to do with the Philosopher's Stone than she had no reason to tell him, he had no right to dig into her personal life, they were simply working together, it didn't make them friends. Edward sighed; he still hated the thought of not knowing something. "Cat?"

Catherine looked up from the small alchemy book she had been reading. "What is it?"

"When does this place start serving dinner? I'm starving…" Edward moaned.

Catherine laughed. "Just another thirty minutes, then you can gorge yourself."

"I don't think I can wait that long…"

"Oh, Brother." Alphonse shook his metal head. "I'm sure you can wait a half hour, you're not going to die."

"You don't know that!" Ed groaned. "I'm wasting away to skin and bones here!"

The three shared a laugh. Catherine held her stomach. "You remember back in Resembool how Pinako would always make stew and you would complain about the milk in it even though it was your favorite food?" Catherine said light heartedly.

"You bet I remember." Edward smiled. "I also remember how she made me go and walk down to your house to get you."

"Hey!" Alphonse stood up from his seated position against the wall. "You always made me go! You told me Auntie Pinako wanted me to go get her!"

Edward smiled slyly. "Oops." Ed laughed as Al proceeded to chase him around the room, Cat laughed so hard her stomach cramped, and even Sarah couldn't stop a tiny smile from stretching her lips.

Night sneaked into the hotel room and the alchemists worked their way into their beds, Alphonse sitting on the floor.

Sarah got up from her bed and, still fully dressed, she moved towards the door.

"Where are you going?"

Sarah startled as she turned around to confront whoever had addressed her. Alphonse stood before her. It was surprising how quietly he could move when he tried. "Just out for a bit. I need some fresh air is all."

Alphonse opened the door for her. "Alright, just be careful." Sarah said nothing as she walked out of the hotel. Edward lay awake in his bed and listened, but did not move.

The sun rose from the horizon, its bright rays temporarily fighting of the darkness. Catherine turned in her bed and pulled the blankets over her head in a futile attempt to stop herself from waking up. Unfortunately for her, her bladder was in no mood to let her return to her carefree slumber. Catherine smiled a bit in memory of last night. At dinner she had ordered a huge glass of milk and drank it right in front of Ed, just because she thought his reaction was hilarious. Cat groaned as she got up from the bed, what goes in has to come out. Stumbling into the bathroom Cat saw herself in the mirror; her hair was standing in all directions and completely defying gravity. Putting her palms on the sink, the cold sending a shiver down her spine, Cat let her head lull forward. Catherine gasped.

In the sink, bloodstains ran towards the drain as though trying to escape her gaze.

Catherine moved back into the main area of their hotel room, she ran to Edward and pulled the blanket off of him, her eyes ran down his body looking for wounds.

"Cat... what the hell are you doing?" Edward mumbled, sleep slurring his speech.

"There's blood in the sink, I had to make sure you were alright." Catherine felt her speeding heart begin to slow.

"Oh, you wake me for a little-" Edward shot bolt upright, his eyes wide. "Blood! Are you alright?"

"I'm fine I was worried about you!" Catherine said.

"If you two are done I brought breakfast."

The two blonds turned to see Sarah, two trays of food in her arms. "Sarah-" Catherine began.

"It was a nose bleed."

"What?" Edward looked confused.

Sarah turned her head to the side, her cheeks coloring slightly. "It was just a nose bleed, I said. I just forgot to wash it all down, it was late."

"It was just a nose bleed? We were worried about that?" Edward felt a smile tug at his lips.

"For the final time, yes!" Sarah grumbled as she walked towards them and handed them their food. "It's nothing to get excited about so just eat your food so we can go back to Marcoh's."

The door of the hotel opened and Alphonse walked in. "Oh, good morning." Everyone exchanged the greeting. "Good to see you back Sarah, are you feeling better?" Al's voice sounded cheery.

"Getting back?" Catherine asked.

"Oh, Sarah just said she wasn't feeling well last night and went for a walk, you were asleep at the time of course. Then again, not many things can wake you up." Al laughed.

"Hmph, see the next time I'm nice to you Al." Catherine did her best to pout, but she couldn't stop herself from smiling. She turned to Sarah. "Maybe we should take you to the doctor?"

"No!" Sarah's face colored more at her sudden outburst.

Catherine laughed. "Afraid of the doctor?" Sarah said nothing. "Don't worry about it." The blond gestured to Ed. "This one's so scared of getting a shot he once ran a couple miles just to get away from the doctor."

"Hey!" Edward shouted. "Don't say that!"

Catherine leaned forward as Alphonse laughed. Cat pinched the skin of Ed's arm and smiled as he yelped. "Oh please, you can't even handle it when I pinch you Ed." Catherine stuck out her tongue.

"Alright you two." Alphonse stepped in the middle of what he knew to be a brewing fight. "Enough of that, we all need to get ready to walk to Marcoh's, remember? We still haven't gotten his research notes."

Ed smiled darkly. "Oh don't worry, we'll get them."


End file.
